Sunday, October 9, 2011

No training, no problem

Thirty minutes before the gun went off, I decided to run a 5K.

I had been a part of the organizing committee for the Highland District Hospital Foundation's Inaugural Family Fun 5K and had no plans to run; I was going to help. A half hour before the race started, the RD said there were enough volunteers and said I could run if I'd like. The only running essentials I had on me were my running shoes and iPod (which I realized after the race started was dead).

Well, really what more do you need to run than just a pair of running shoes?

My colleague, the managing editor of The Times-Gazette, Steve Roush, decided last minute to run the race and showed up on site. It was great to see him and we agreed it would be cool to run it together.

Steve told me that it had been four years since he'd run. Having lost several pounds in recent months and owning the eliptical at the Y, he was ready to go, but planned to take it easy.

I've been dealing with some kind of feet injury since July. It's some kind of muscle issue as a result of wearing the wrong pair of new high heels for too long over a three-day period ... I believe. So, I've been taking it very easy on my feet since my last tri on July 30.

Considering everything, teaming up with Steve for the three-mile run was a perfect plan.

We kept the same pace and only walked twice (walking a few yards to sip on some water). I went a little slower than my normal pace, but it was very comfortable and allowed me to soak up the beautiful scenery even more. I felt good the whole race and my feet didn't bother me.

We finished 56 and 57 out of about 120 with an approximate time of 38 minutes.

My hamstrings, quads and abs are sore today ... so are my feet, just not in the exact spot where my pain had been. I'm hoping it's just regular muscle soreness from lack of use.

We'll see.

Of course I'm biased, but this race was awesome. The family-friendly atmosphere was a hit with parents (pony rides, bounce house, pumpkin decorating and 10 and under fun run), the backdrop of the lake was beautiful, it was well-organized, started on time and had plenty of volunteers.

I can't wait until next year.

7 comments:

TriGirl said...

What a fun way to be spontaneous! Sorry about your feet :(

Lora Abernathy said...

Thanks, TriGirl. It really is cool to just be able to up and do something like that.

Ransick said...

How fun to do a spontaneous race! That is awesome, glad you had fun.

ONEHOURIRONMAN said...

Great to be in a place where the leaves actually change colors too!!
I miss that.

Lora Abernathy said...

Yeah, it was pretty cool to be in a position to be able to do something like that, Mike.

Yeah, no matter where we live, Bob, we West Virginians never get over the colors of fall. Luckily, Ohio's got a colorful landscape, too ... just nowhere near as majestic.

Big Daddy Diesel said...

spontaneous racing is always the best races

Lora Abernathy said...

So true, BDD. There's a really cool shot of me and my colleague crossing the finish line and the look on my face is pure joy.

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